ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Amnesty International called on the U.S. to investigate reports of civilians killed and wounded by CIA drone strikes in Pakistan in a report released Tuesday that provided new details about the alleged victims of the attacks, including a 68-year-old grandmother hit while farming with her grandchildren.

Mamana Bibi’s grandchildren told the London-based rights group that she was killed by missile fire as she was collecting vegetables in a family field in the North Waziristan tribal area, a major terrorist sanctuary near the Afghan border. Three of Ms. Bibi’s grandchildren were wounded in the strike, as were several others who were nearby, the victims said.

The U.S. considers its drone program to be a key weapon against insurgent groups that it says stages cross-border forays into neighbouring Afghanistan. But the belief, widespread in Pakistan, that the strikes kill large numbers of civilians sparks resentment and complicates the two countries’ ability to co-ordinate efforts against terrorists based in the country, including Al-Qaeda.

On Friday, the drone debate is scheduled to spill onto the floor of the United Nations, whose officials have recently published reports that attacked America’s lack of transparency over drones.

In a separate report on drone strikes in Yemen, Human Rights Watch (HRW) highlights six cases it says breached international law — either because civilians were killed or because “disproportionate civilian harm” was caused.

“Even if some of the attacks described in this report do not violate the laws of war, they appear to fall short of the thresholds set by the Obama administration for carrying out targeted killings. Attacks that do not meet the US policy guidelines would contravene law enforcement standards under international human rights law,” says the HRW report.

Amnesty said the U.S. is so secretive about its drone program that there is no way to tell what steps it takes to prevent civilian casualties. They say it has “failed to commit to conduct investigations” into alleged deaths that have already occurred.

With regards Pakistan, several different organizations have tried to track the number of civilian casualties from nearly ten years of drone strikes, including the Long War Journal website, the New America Foundation think-tank and the Bureau of Investigative journalism. These groups indicated that the attacks have killed between 2,065 and 3,613 people, the report said. Between 153 and 926 were thought to be civilians.

Amnesty said it is concerned that the attacks outlined in the report and others may have resulted in unlawful killings that constitute extrajudicial executions or war crimes, even though the U.S. insists the strikes are legal.

“We cannot find any justification for these killings. There are genuine threats to the USA and its allies in the region, and drone strikes may be lawful in some circumstances,” said Mustafa Qadri, Amnesty International’s Pakistan researcher. “But it is hard to believe that a group of labourers, or an elderly woman surrounded by her grandchildren, were endangering anyone at all, let alone posing an imminent threat to the United States.”

Amnesty called on the U.S. to comply with its obligations under international law by investigating the killings documented in the report and providing victims with “full reparation.”

The U.S. carried out its first drone strike in Pakistan in 2004 and has carried out nearly 350 more since then, the majority of which have been in North Waziristan. President Barack Obama significantly ramped up attacks when he took office in 2009, and the number peaked the following year with over 100 strikes. The frequency has steadily dropped since then, partly because of growing tension between Pakistan and the U.S. There have only been around two dozen strikes so far this year.

ON DRONES:

In a speech in May this year, President Barack Obama said, “Dozens of highly skilled Al-Qaeda commanders, trainers, bomb makers and operatives have been taken off the battlefield. Plots have been disrupted that would have targeted international aviation, U.S. transit systems, European cities and our troops in Afghanistan. Simply put, these strikes have saved lives…And before any strike is taken, there must be near-certainty that no civilians will be killed or injured — the highest standard we can set. “

Amnesty International

“The USA appears to be exploiting the lawless and remote nature of [North Waziristan, Pakistan] to evade accountability for its drone program, including killings that may constitute extrajudicial executions or war crimes.”

Human Rights Watch

Of the six cases highlighted by HRW, “Two [of] these attacks were in clear violation of international humanitarian law — the laws of war — because they struck only civilians or used indiscriminate weapons. The other four cases may have violated the laws of war because the individual attacked was not a lawful military target or the attack caused disproportionate civilian harm.”

Nazeer Gul, a shopkeeper in Miram Shah, Pakistan

“The drones are like the angels of death. Only they know when and where they will strike.”

National Post

Pakistani officials regularly denounce the attacks in public as a violation of the country’s sovereignty, but senior members of the government and the military are known to have supported the strikes in the past.

Amnesty said victims they interviewed with no apparent connection to terrorist groups have either received no compensation or inadequate assistance from the Pakistani government.

The top political official in North Waziristan gave Ms. Bibi’s family around $100 to cover medical expenses for the children injured in the strike, even though the total cost to the family, including loss of livestock and repairs to their home, was around $9,500, the rights group said.

The Associated Press, with files from National Post

A report by Amnesty International highlighted several cases in Pakistan that could constitute “extrajudicial executions or war crimes.” The report said, “According to NGO and Pakistan government sources the USA has launched some 330 to 374 drone strikes in Pakistan between 2004 and September 2013. Amnesty International is not in a position to endorse these figures, but according to these sources, between 400 and 900 civilians have been killed in these attacks and at least 600 people seriously injured.”

Esso Khel. May 24, 2012

Drone strikes kill eight people, including four Taliban and four foreign fighters. Strike totally destroys mosque used by Taliban and allied fighters and damages neighbouring buildings used by local residents who were not fighters.

Miran Shah Bazaar. May 26, 2012

Drone strike kills 3-4 members of the Taliban. The strike destroys the entire building, including the bakery operated by two brothers, depriving them and their employees of their livelihood.

Esso Khel. June 4, 2012

Drones kill five men and injure four more. A second strike hits rescuers. Ten to 16 people killed in total, says Amnesty International, including six local tribesmen assisting victims. Senior Al-Qaeda leader Abu Yahya Al-Libi dies in second attack.

A report by Amnesty International highlighted several cases in Pakistan that could constitute “extrajudicial executions or war crimes.” The report said, “According to NGO and Pakistan government sources the USA has launched some 330 to 374 drone strikes in Pakistan between 2004 and September 2013. Amnesty International is not in a position to endorse these figures, but according to these sources, between 400 and 900 civilians have been killed in these attacks and at least 600 people seriously injured.”

Esso Khel. May 24, 2012

Drone strikes kill eight people, including four Taliban and four foreign fighters. Strike totally destroys mosque used by Taliban and allied fighters and damages neighbouring buildings used by local residents who were not fighters.

Miran Shah Bazaar. May 26, 2012

Drone strike kills 3-4 members of the Taliban. The strike destroys the entire building, including the bakery operated by two brothers, depriving them and their employees of their livelihood.

Esso Khel. June 4, 2012

Drones kill five men and injure four more. A second strike hits rescuers. Ten to 16 people killed in total, says Amnesty International, including six local tribesmen assisting victims. Senior Al-Qaeda leader Abu Yahya Al-Libi dies in second attack.

Mamana Bibi, 68, killed while gathering vegetables with her grandchildren in family field.

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A Human Rights Watch (HRW) report highlights six cases of drone strikes in Yemen that the organization says bear the hallmarks of so-called “targeted killings.”

Khashamir. Aug. 29, 2012

Five men killed by three Hellfire missiles while meeting behind the local mosque. Yemen Defense Ministry said three were Al-Qaeda members, but a fourth man was Salim bin Ali Jaber, a cleric and father of seven, who had preached against Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). The fifth man was his cousin, Walid bin Ali Jaber, a policeman. Al-Qaeda demanded to meet the cleric because he had preached strongly against them the previous Friday.

Wessab. April 17, 2013

Three Hellfire missiles hit a car and kill suspected local AQAP leader, Hamid Al-Radmi, as well as his driver and two bodyguards. The HRW report says, “The strike appears not to have complied with the Obama administration guidelines because it appears that Al-Radmi could have been captured rather than killed.”

Al-Masnaah. Jan. 23, 2013

One or more Hellfire missiles kill four people in a truck. Two passengers were suspected AQAP members. The other two men in the vehicle were Salim Al-Qawli, 34, a teacher and his cousin Ali Al-Qawli, 20, a student who drove the Toyota as a car service to earn money.

Beit al-Ahmar. Nov., 7, 2012

A drone strike kills Lt.-Col. Adnan Al-Qadhi, an army officer and suspected local AQAP leader. “The evidence suggests that Al-Qadhi could have been captured rather than killed,” says HRW.

Sarar. Sept., 2, 2012

Two warplanes or drones attack a vehicle killing 12 passengers, including three children and a pregnant woman “in violation of the laws-of-war prohibition against attacks that do not discriminate between civilians and combatants.”

Al-Majalah. Dec., 17, 2009

As many as five U.S. Navy Tomahawk cruise missiles armed with cluster munitions strike the hamlet of Al-Majalah. According to a Yemeni government inquiry, the strike killed 14 suspected AQAP fighters and at least 41 local civilians living in a Bedouin camp, including nine women and 21 children. Cluster munition remnants killed at least four additional civilians and wounded 13 others.